2020
Sarah M. A. Abbas
- Age: 31
- | She/her/hers
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We are walking a road that has been paved by others, and the next generation will walk on the road that we pave today. Therefore, I choose to participate in the fight for sexual and reproductive health and rights, even if I can't witness radical change in my lifetime. Together, we can rise.
- Sarah M. A. Abbas
Bio
Sarah is enthusiastic Public Health Specialist with more than 6 years’ experience in Sexual and Reproductive Health, Maternal Health, FGM/C, and HIV/AIDS projects. She worked in Sudan but recieved her Public Health training in both the UK and the USA. Sarah is organized, driven and collaborative with in-depth understanding of program needs, and research strategies. She is expert in project management, M&E, and qualitative research in both developmental and humanitarian settings. Sarah received YALI training in 2016, the Chevening scholarship award in 2017-2018, and the Hubert Humphrey Fellowship in 2021-2022.
On her free time, Sarah is part of the African Union Youth Volunteers Corps and Alsudaniya Mentoring Program.
What ignited your pursuit for gender equality?
My personal experience of witnessing oppression of women around me.
Please share your biggest wins as an advocate for gender equality.
While working at Ana Lan Initiative, a youth initiative to raise awareness about female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), I designed and coordinated a project. The project aimed to raise awareness among non-visible labor from internally displaced communities through a peer education approach. We selected 15 females from different areas, and then we empowered them with knowledge and leadership skills. After the training, each one of them started advocating for stopping FGM/C in her community, through coffee social gatherings and social events. We managed to mobilize the community by using the community members as change agents, which empowered women and made a difference in the knowledge of their peers regarding the practice.
Outside of your gender equality advocacy work, what do you enjoy doing?
In my spare time, I love listening to music and reading books.
Languages Spoken:
- Arabic (Advanced/Native)
- English (Advance/Native)
- French (Beginner)
- English (Advance/Native)
Speaks On:
- FGM/C
- midwifery and maternal health
- HIV/AIDS interventions for sex workers and men who have sex with men
Past Awards, Certifications, or Fellowships:
- Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) Fellowship
- Sudanese Young Leaders Program by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) Organization
- Chevening Scholarship
- Hubert Humphrey Fellowship
